Seconds I give away, thirds I smash and trash, I don't have any pictures just bad memories. I am working right now on filling my large kiln with new work that is a combination of styles could get some really odd work out of it. Denice

For the most part they are hidden under the coating of fall's leaves that get raked in there every fall. Looks mainly like a leaf pile with a few pieces of pots peeking out. Not very dramatic.... but I know what is under there .

best,

.........................john

John BaymoreImmediate Past President; Potters CouncilProfessor of Ceramics; New Hampshire Insitute of Art

Here is my great seconds story.
I used to work in a co-operative pottery studio, and we would have a two day Christmas sale, and a one day spring sale before Mother's day.My studio neighbour [also a potter]. sold a casserole dish with a lid for $8.00, at the spring sale. It had a small crack in the bottom, but was still functional.The price tag was marked in red as a "second".
A woman happily bought it. Two weeks later, a different woman came in saying that she had received this casserole as a wedding gift. It had a small crack in the bottom. Could she exchange it for a better one without the crack ? My potter friend did not have the heart to tell her that her wedding gift was a second and that her friend had only spent $8.00 on her for her wedding.She made good on a new casserole to the tune of $65.00.
I immediately got out my hammer and started smashing.
The end.
TJR.

Here is my great seconds story. I used to work in a co-operative pottery studio, and we would have a two day Christmas sale, and a one day spring sale before Mother's day.My studio neighbour [also a potter]. sold a casserole dish with a lid for $8.00, at the spring sale. It had a small crack in the bottom, but was still functional.The price tag was marked in red as a "second".A woman happily bought it. Two weeks later, a different woman came in saying that she had received this casserole as a wedding gift. It had a small crack in the bottom. Could she exchange it for a better one without the crack ? My potter friend did not have the heart to tell her that her wedding gift was a second and that her friend had only spent $8.00 on her for her wedding.She made good on a new casserole to the tune of $65.00.I immediately got out my hammer and started smashing.The end.TJR.

Bingo! Thanks for sharing that common kind of storry on what seconds and subs REALLY do, TJR. If work is "out there" that is less than your best at the moment with your name on it or clearly in "your style"......... you WILL end up being judged by it.

Selling "seconds" for an artist is a short sighted mistake. Small gain now for big loss later. It devalues your work.

First quality or landfill. If you do that....... your prices for the work can take off. If not........ well...................

If you look at your pottery work more as a commodity.... like most manufactured goods are viewed... then that is fine to do. But if you look at it as something more than that kind of product......... then it is not really doing yourself any favors.

best,

........................john

John BaymoreImmediate Past President; Potters CouncilProfessor of Ceramics; New Hampshire Insitute of Art

My pile has just started as my studio is just under a year old. So far, I have simply been putting the shards in buckets. But I have been thinking about doing some sort of random garden edging with them. Not sure how this will work out but I am thinking it would work in the some way as river rock if I do them small enough. Not sure yet?? I have both bisque and glazed shards so I am not sure what I will do with them.

Here is another idea that I encountered at a studio I worked at in Manitoba. Once a year, at Christmas usually, all the potters donated their second to a Christmas sale. Kids were given the option to shop for their parents as this sale once per year. Mugs went for $1.00 for example. Really cheap prices that the kids could afford. Often these pieces had only slight dents or chips. Nothing drastic was wrong. Given that most of the potters were students no signatures or telling information was on the pot. Thus, it was a good system. As I recall, my mark at the time was the end of a pencil--the eraser head shoved into the foot. Somewhere out there there are mugs living in peoples homes (hopefully they are still there) will this no tell tell sign of the mark of the potter:) It was a great system. The small community really looked forward to it every year. They sold tickets and the kids lined up for the event.

.............all the potters donated their second to a Christmas sale. Kids were given the option to shop for their parents as this sale once per year. Mugs went for $1.00 for example. Really cheap prices that the kids could afford.

Nice sentiment........ however in my opinion, if this is going to be done it should be done with first quality works....not seconds. Kids are the future of the world. Why teach them that second best is OK when it comes to artwork? When I do stuff with kids they get the same pieces that anyone else gets.......they just get them way cheaper.

best,

..........................john

John BaymoreImmediate Past President; Potters CouncilProfessor of Ceramics; New Hampshire Insitute of Art

My pile has just started as my studio is just under a year old. So far, I have simply been putting the shards in buckets. But I have been thinking about doing some sort of random garden edging with them. Not sure how this will work out but I am thinking it would work in the some way as river rock if I do them small enough. Not sure yet?? I have both bisque and glazed shards so I am not sure what I will do with them.

Here is another idea that I encountered at a studio I worked at in Manitoba. Once a year, at Christmas usually, all the potters donated their second to a Christmas sale. Kids were given the option to shop for their parents as this sale once per year. Mugs went for $1.00 for example. Really cheap prices that the kids could afford. Often these pieces had only slight dents or chips. Nothing drastic was wrong. Given that most of the potters were students no signatures or telling information was on the pot. Thus, it was a good system. As I recall, my mark at the time was the end of a pencil--the eraser head shoved into the foot. Somewhere out there there are mugs living in peoples homes (hopefully they are still there) will this no tell tell sign of the mark of the potter:) It was a great system. The small community really looked forward to it every year. They sold tickets and the kids lined up for the event.

Nelly

Nelly;You are aware of course that I live in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I don't know this studio, but I will keep my eye out for your mugs.TJR.

When I packed for a move across the country, I "found" boxes of smash which I gave to the local school art dept for mosaic projects. I now have my first bucket of smash from my current year-old studio. in a few weeks, some friends are coming over for a mosaic party.

Other than my own studio use of some seconds, here and there a friend might choose one, but on the whole, the hammer comes out monthly.

My art teacher always said, "Keep it small, it is easier to bury." I try to be really brutal when I go over my ware before putting it in the bisque. If something goes wrong in the glaze firing, it goes to the dump in itty bitty pieces.

If I have pieces that have been to three or four sales without being sold, but have no damage, they go to Goodwill Industries. Occasionally I will pull one of those from inventory and store it for a while, but after a year or so I go through that storage area and pick heavily for Goodwill.

Anything with functional issues, physical damage, or glaze faults gets the hammer and goes to bottom of a flower pot for drainage or to the mosaic stock box.

.............all the potters donated their second to a Christmas sale. Kids were given the option to shop for their parents as this sale once per year. Mugs went for $1.00 for example. Really cheap prices that the kids could afford.

Nice sentiment........ however in my opinion, if this is going to be done it should be done with first quality works....not seconds. Kids are the future of the world. Why teach them that second best is OK when it comes to artwork? When I do stuff with kids they get the same pieces that anyone else gets.......they just get them way cheaper.

best,

..........................john

Dear John,

Never thought about that before but it makes sense. We should not short-change the kids. I think in retrospect, it was all the artist members wanted to give to such a sale. Perhaps more thought should have been put into this before we did it (i.e., lets give the sale some of our nice work and let um get it for a cheaper rate). Good example of not thinking long term. Short sighted. A means to an end really. Get rid of stuff, do the community a supposed favor but not acknowledge that we are in a way slighting the kids. Point well taken.